To Have a Dream
by Uzamaki-Girl
Summary: Sometimes a dream is all you have. Brief mention of NarutoHinata.


A/N- Well here is another one-shot. I always wondered why of all things Naruto would want to be Hokage. This is how I see it.

DISCLAIMER- I do not own naruto.

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Naruto lay on the floor of the body thrown battlefield, blood dripping from his wounds. Though he was bleeding profusely, he could feel nothing. _'Is this what it feels like to die' _he thought. He was only fifteen but had been through more than other ninja's had who were twice his age. His thoughts went back to his genin days, to him becoming a chunin and finally to why he was laying on this battlefield. He like many others had a dream. He was going to be the next Hokage. Being Hokage meant protecting everyone with your life. It meant being acknowledged because the power you held. As a child he was ignored by the villagers and left to fend for himself, which of course made him very attention starved. A victim of circumstance, the nine-tailed demon was sealed inside him. As a result none of the adults had gotten to know the true him, but he was thankful for the ones that did.

He laughed bitterly as he realized that dream would not come true. He heard footsteps approaching as he tried to turn his head in the direction of the sound. In no time the rookie 9 surrounded him. "Naruto-kun" he heard Hinata gasp. Yes, he never did get to tell her that he loved her. He wanted to make sure he was accepted by the village first. He would never make Hinata go through the same kind of torture that he went through. Maybe it was better this way. After his death she could move on and not wonder about what could have been. Although Lee and TenTen were closer, Sasuke and Sakura were the first ones to get to him. They watched as Sakura tried over and over again to heal him. He knew that he could probably use the kyuubi's power to heal himself, but he found that he didn't want to.

"Dobe" Sasuke said in a shaky voice "Leave you alone for one minute and you go and get yourself attacked." Though his face was stoic his eyes held something akin to anguish.

Naruto tried to laugh but could only manage a gurgled sound. Meanwhile Sakura was still trying to heal Naruto. Bruised hands lifted onto her trembling ones, stopping the green flow of chakra from entering his wounds.

What are you doing you, baka! Move your hands so I can heal you!" Sakura said frantically.

Naruto could only manage to shake his head. His throat was too constricted with blood for him to speak.

Sasuke couldn't take it anymore. All these feelings he hadn't felt since his parents died came rushing back to him. Fear, anxiety and anger were all fighting for control. In the end anger won out.

"What the fuck dobe!" Sasuke yelled "What about your dream! What about proving your nindo! Has everything you've been saying all these years been nothing but lies?" Sasuke said through clenched teeth.

Naruto's eyes rolled up to the sky where an eagle was flying undisturbed by the horrific scene of dead bodies before him.

"Sasuke" Naruto said, turning his darkening blue eyes to him "I'm tired."

"What?" Sasuke said confused by his answer.

"I'm tired Naruto repeated "My whole life I wanted to be Hokage, to gain the trust and recognition of the villagers. For my dream I would do anything. I dreamt of the day when the villagers would realize that I wasn't the demon fox, but Uzamaki Naruto." He stopped and coughed violently, blood seeping through the corners of his mouth. "Now I see that it doesn't matter that the villagers never accepted me because people like you Hinata-chan and Sakura-chan have." Naruto struggled to grin but ended up with a lopsided smile. "So you see I did prove my nindo, just not in the way you all expected."

"By dying?" Sasuke yelled, his shoulders shaking with suppressed anger.

"My dream was to have friends and be recognized; I accomplished that through hard work. My dream was to protect my precious people and I did that by giving my life. My dream was to be Hokage. Being Hokage means protecting your precious people and I have done that. I have achieved all I wanted to achieve…and…I'm tired.

Lee looked on numbly as he watched Naruto fall in and out of unconsciousness. Would that be his fate? Would his dream cost him his life like Naruto's did? Even though these fears laid heavily on his soul, he knew just like Naruto he would never give up on his dream. For him his dream was a way of life. Only dead-last like him and Naruto would understand this.

"Is that what a dream does Naruto, huh! Cost you your life?" Sasuke yelled shaking Naruto. Sakura tried unsuccessfully to pull Sasuke off but his grip was to strong.

Naruto looked up at the sky, the eagle was gone. "Sasuke" Naruto said meeting his dark angry eyes with his drooping blue ones. "Sometimes…Sometimes a dream is all you have. Sometimes" Naruto said his eyes turning back to the sky. "Sometimes having a dream is the only thing that keeps you going. The only thing that keeps a smile on your face. The only thing that keeps you alive" Naruto whispered as his eyes closed for the last time.

"Naruto!" Sasuke yelled still shaking him "Damn it! Is this why you brought me back from Sound? To watch you die!"

"Naruto!" Sasuke yelled again. A palm placed it self over Sasuke's hand, effectively stopping him from shaking Naruto. He locked on to the glistening eyes of Sakura.

"Sasuke" she said slowly "Let him go."

"Sakura" he said through clenched teeth, his eyes narrowing. He turned his back to Sakura and began shaking Naruto again.

"Sasuke" Sakura said again, her throat tight with emotion. At the sound of her voice he stopped and turned to her "Let him go." She whispered, tears trailing down her porcelain cheeks. He closed his eyes and shrank back, only supported by Sakura's arm around his shoulder. He had just lost another family member, and this time…Itachi wasn't to blame.

Deep in the recesses of Naruto's mind he can vaguely make out his name being called. He felt his body get lighter and lighter as he drifted towards a bright light. He smiled, feeling the pleasant numb feeling returning to his body. His dream was why he was on the battlefield.

For his dream he would protect. For his dream he would battle missing Nin's and save the world. For his dream he would die.

To have a dream meant that he wasn't the demon fox, since demons do not dream. To have a dream made life livable.

To have a dream made him Uzamaki Naruto.

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Good? Bad? Review pleae! 


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